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Thursday, May 24, 2012

How To: DIY Antiqued Mercury Mirror Glass

Today we're excited to to share this simple and affordable method for transforming any piece of glass into a beautiful decor update with an antiqued mercury glass style finish — it's amazing.

I've been eyeing lots of different decor accessories in the style of antique mercury glass as of late — this trend seems to be everywhere and I have to admit I've gotten a little sucked into the idea of a mirrored glass bedside lamp or even a bedside table. Given the fact I'm the only one in this household with this opinion, I've decided to get my feet wet slowly and figured out how to achieve the antiqued mercury glass look in a completely DIY method with smaller glass accessories I already had lying around the house.

Here's what I was working with —a glass mason jar, milk bottle, ridged flower vase and a smaller round votive type candle holder. They were all things I either had in hiding down in the cellar or headed for the recycle bin, so I figured I had little to nothing to lose in the event things went horribly wrong, haha.

What I really liked about experimenting with all these different shapes and textures was the ability to test the finish on a smaller scale so I'd be able to imagine different possibilities as I come across glass pieces in the future on a larger scale (like that clear glass lamp just waiting for me to find it).

Back in the day, real mercury glass was used a decor accents and was an affordable option to it's silver decor counterparts — today we'll be making the affordable version of this original hack (kinda funny, right?).

The one catch to this tutorial is the fact that you'll really need to look for the specific Krylon looking glass spray. I was able to find it in more than one of our local craft stores, but if you are at a loss, you can find it online. While I haven't actually tried any other sprays, I did read in a few other Pinterest tutorials from people that did who wish in retrospect they had gone with the Krylon looking glass spray (just tyring to save you all a little time, money and frustration here).

Cover area outside (or in an extremely well ventilated area) where you
plan to spray with newsprint or other protective covering — we used cut
up grocery bags that we had on hand for projects like these.

Thoroughly clean and dry all glass pieces you'll be working with — you want to make sure the glass is clean in order for the spray to fully do it's thing. Fill a spray bottle with 1 part water to 1 part white vinegar and shake to combine. Set nozzle of spray bottle to it's finest mist setting. Put on any protective gloves or masks you wish to use and let's get started!

This is where I armed myself with my water/vinegar spray bottle in one
hand and my looking glass spray in the other. First gently spray a fine
mist of vinegar/water on the outside* of your glass container; you are looking for small droplets of water that bead up and do not run.

Follow up the water/vinegar spray almost immediately with a gentle and even layer of the metallic spray.

*Note about spray: if you are like me, you read all the directions and warnings on the
looking glass spray before using, so you know it requires lots of
shaking before and between use and recommends using on the inside of the glass — this is where
you need to trust me — I (gasp) used it on the outside of the glass. I
did this because I wanted to actually be able to put things like flowers
and candles inside the containers and the end result was good for me,
so I'm just putting it out there.

Allow to dry for just a minute and apply another fine mist of water/vinegar solution — then let them sit. Here's what our glass containers looked like as they began to dry with both sprays applied — notice the fine beading from the water/vinegar solution creating variations in the mirror spray:

Allow to dry for about 2 minutes, then gently blot the beads of water/vinegar with your paper towel — they should lift off areas of the mirror spray in a varied pattern. Don't rub very hard as the metallic finish will streak, though you can apply gentle pressure in various places to achieve a more realistic and varied mercury glass look. Don't worry that the glass is still see-through at this point, since you'll be doing several thin layers to build up the look over time.

Just repeat the same process over and over, and rotating between resting your glass container on its base versus its top so you get full coverage. All in all I probably went with between 3-4 coats in total.

You want to go with several thin and even layers of the spray to avoid
runniness and splotching — trust me, the end result is worth the
patience. Keep building up your layers until you are happy with the overall look and feel of your containers — then allow to dry for at least 3 hours until bringing inside or off the protective covering; you want them to set and seal.

After your container is completely dry, now you are ready to either tweak or style. If you think an area needs a little more or less coverage you can simply spot treat with more spray or spray with more water/vinegar and continue to blot away the treatment — this is where you own creativity and taste come into play.

Once complete, the creative uses are endless. I played around with different flower arrangements around the house since I had some beautiful peonies on hand from Tim :)

I just love how the little distressed and antiqued details came out — they really do show as something that's been lightly worn away over time (something I was skeptical about going into this project).

On the milk bottle specifically, I was hoping the spray might just go right over the blue logo text to make it look like a single old milk bottle — while the spray didn't erase the text, it did completely seal it in a silvery look that almost pronounced it even more. I was surprisingly happy with the end result here.

You might also notice exactly how well the promise of
"looking glass" or the mirror effect came into play as with each photo I
tried really hard to avoid getting my own reflection — without luck,
haha.

I've been really excited to try out this tutorial becuase I'm thinking a mix of several of these antiqued containers with other little vessels here and there might make really beautiful, not to mention affordable diy touches for our wedding decor next year — flowers and votives anyone? Tim and I are both really happy with the outcome of these test pieces, so we'll definitely be looking for more glass odds and ends over the next several months that could fit well together for the wedding reception.

Like I said in the beginning of the post, the possibilities for this antique mercury glass finish are endless so long as you start out with a clean piece of glass — I'm still dreaming up visions of lamps, groupings of mirrors and other accessories inspired by the images below:

They've added a colorful update to these little spaces and were fun to pair up with a few green glass water bottles we had laying around too. Find our full house tour here.

All in all, we both love how well this faux finish turned out and
couldn't be more excited to share it with each of you since it was so
simple! Keep us posted should you try it out — we'd love to see what you
come up with.

So what do you think — would you try this? What piece of glass would you transform with fun diy this finishing technique?

UPDATE: I tried the Krylon Looking Glass Spray for another project, updating the finials on our bathroom window hardware — check out the results here.

Hahaha, Faith — we know that "problem." We have the same one with the glass milk bottles we buy. They are just so pretty and even though we know we can return them for the deposit back, somehow they just continue to collect in our house!

This is a great tutorial--very clear instructions. Thanks for sharing. I can't wait to try it on all my ugly random glass containers. Have you tried oxidizing or darkening it to give it a more vintage look?

Thanks so much for sharing this way of "faking" mercury glass. I've tried other ways of doing this with so-so results. THIS worked so much better! Also, I even tried this on blue glass...then distressed it even further so that some of the blue would show! Loved it! ~~Robyne~~

I love this look and want to try it for my daughter's wedding. Can you give some idea how far one can of spray will take you. We may have 20+ tables for the reception....just trying to think ahead.Thanks!

Love the idea to do a big grouping for a wedding - we're hoping to do the same for ours! I was able to spray all 4 containers you see pictured with about 4 generous layers with one small sized can of spray. If I were doing it again I think I could stretch it now that I know what I'm doing — also, some of the bottles and vases I used were pretty large so those took up more spray than normal. Hope this helps!

Do you know if you can use any other type of spray in any other colors? I would love to have this same look but with gold or rose gold, rather than the silver look...obviously the "looking glass" spray is only the mirror/silver color, but maybe a different spray paint could be used?

Hey Megan — great question! We'll on the lookout for other colors that could produce the same effect and let you know if we come across one. We're sure you could achieve something similar with a little trial and error!

This is a great tutorial! I tried it today and am having one small issue. When I blot it seems that the paint is coming off completely in some spots instead of getting darker spots the way it looks on your finished pieces. Perhaps I am not letting it dry long enough? Just wondering if anyone else had this problem.

Did this today and I am LOVING the results! There are just so many decorative possibilities with this technique! I cannot wait to try this on Xmas decorations! I only wish I had known about this when I got married...I would have loved to use mercury glass in my centerpieces but it is usually so pricey.

love this! the mercury glass that my great grandmother and grandmother had oh how I wish I had known... I loved it but I was a kid and my mom didn't keep it. I can't wait to try all of this out, thnx so much for the diy.

we haven't put ours through the dishwasher or scrubbed it too hard. I imagine the finish might continue to rub off over time. However, if you put a clear coat over the top of it after the mercury glass spray, you might be able to wash as normal! Keep us posted if you try it and it works!

LOVE this tutorial! I just purchased a bronze colored antiqued-looking candle holder, and I have been wanting some pieces to match! I am going to try it with a gold or bronze color!! Thanks so much for this!

Thank you for your tutorial, it was very helpful. I really wanted the shinier finish so I sprayed the inside of mason jars and found that they may not work for holding flowers in as I originally wanted. I have not sealed them yet, so maybe that will help.

I have found that water quickly takes off the paint and wonder if you found this when washing yours?

You solved my problem! My daughter is getting married & insists the table decor has to be small! She wants everyone to be able to "visit" without an obstruction. I am going to find the right globe and hit it with this. I'm also going to try to find clear glass for my back splash and in my bathroom. I figure if I seal them well, they will look amazing. I'll try a little area first, but I'm excited about this!! Thanks a bunch!!!

I was just wondering about the vinager...can it be apple cider or does it have to be white? And does it affects the paint after the paint is sprayed on or only if the water/vinager is sprayed on first?

I am so glad I found this it totally works - I used it for my kitchen backsplash - see results here www.jaeks.com/jj.htm

Ann Sacks tiles would have been thousands of dollars and this DIY looks just as good! Lots of trials and tribulations but all good. Clear glass tiles cut, paint one side; goes on the wall with glass side out. Used lots of layers, mirror, silver, and specs of black spray paint for extra aging. Attaching with silicone calk worked the best. Love the results!

I think this looks so much better with the paint sprayed on the outside, I've seen others spray it on the inside of the glass and if the glass is too thick it just looks like a sheet of aluminum foil put in a glass b/c you see the clear glass before the silver color.

The material is definitely made for glass but we too have a lamp we have been wanting to try it on. If you get to it before we do please let us know. Otherwise if we try it we will certainly publish it on the blog!

Hey, love this idea and so excited to try it! The other thing is i was thinking of trying this on a glass beer mug for my bf for christmas but not sure if it is harmful/washable. Any info would be greatly appreciated!

Hi, so glad to see someone brave enough to try spraying on the outside, which is what I need to do, as the pieces I have in mind are opaque. Can you confirm that, although about 2 years have passed since you sprayed these pieces, the mirror finish is still strong and unmarred?

I inherited a pair of 1970s avocado-green lamps from my mom because, frankly, nobody else wanted them. After they are rewired (the wiring is quite "crunchy" and dangerous), I want do something wonderful to make them pretty to the point where my sister will try to convince me that our mom would have wanted her to have them. :D I think I would need to rewire first because the finish might be damaged during the rewiring process? Agree?

The color is a truly hideous green, but the lamps themselves are a pair of graceful medium-sized ginger jars, which is a classic shape that goes almost anywhere. With some brand-new lampshades, they'll be amazing.

This is fab! I stumbled across this yesterday and I couldn't sleep in excitement to try. After calling all over town to find my Krylon I finally had my Mission:Accomplished. I just finished a sample piece - waiting for it to dry! Love! Thank you.

These are so pretty! I have been wanting to make "mercury glass" for a long time.

Both of my daughters just moved into their own (separate) apartments. I had fun helping them set up and decorate their places. I was very surprised they both like the same style of furniture, colors and décor! They BOTH wanted mercury glass pieces.

I had read a way to make fake mercury glass is to fill a glass bowl/vase/item with water then quickly pour out the water and lightly spray the inside with silver spray paint. In this method the idea was to not cover the glass completely.

Now that I have learned your method, I think I'll do both ways and compare!

Everything that we have done basically still looks like we did it yesterday. We are concerned that if you wipe the table with chemical products that might aaffect it. If you try it let us know how it stands up!